Light has been operating in the meditation space since 1998, first as a practitioner, then as an apprentice to his Vedic Meditation teacher, and finally as a teacher himself. He's currently based in Santa Monica, CA, but travels the world giving talks on happiness, mindfulness, inspiration, and meditation, as well as leading popular meditation trainings and retreats.

His passion is to teach people simple tools for increasing happiness. To date, Light has taught meditation to thousands through his live courses, books, and online trainings. He's taught at Apple, Soho House, Summit, and several tech start-ups around the U.S. His first book, The Inner Gym (L&G), is a 30-day "inner workout" for strengthening happiness, and his upcoming book, Bliss More: How to Succeed in Meditation Without Really Trying (Ballantine), is a straight-talk how-to book that teaches busy professionals how to enjoy meditation.

Light contributes to multiple wellness blogs and writes a popular daily email called Light's Daily Dose of Inspiration. Light's TEDx talk has garnered hundreds of thousands of views, and he is the founder of The Shine Movement, a global pop-up inspirational variety show on a mission to share the stories of regular people who are making a difference in the world.

I didn’t start meditating to be cool – I started meditating to save my life. By 26 years old I loathed my very existence, and was trapped in a downward spiral of self-destruction. I’ve tried numerous methods of finding peace of mind using various practices of meditation, but Vedic meditation has been my Holy Grail.

I also know that meditation is one of the things you all are hungry to learn more about, so I sat down with Light Watkins, an author and Vedic teacher who wants to empower the everyman to meditate.

Some meditation practices and techniques are very specific and rigid, both physically and mentally. This is what a lot of people think of when they hear the word “meditation,” and in all honesty, those practices can be a struggle for the amateur who sincerely wants to make a daily practice out of meditation.

If you want to sit with your legs crossed on the floor for an hour, that’s fine! But that’s NOT necessary to achieve the best or most efficient results from meditation – you can’t focus your way to bliss.

Vedic meditation, on the other hand, is about reshaping the relationship with the mind to effortlessly experience fully-awake restful consciousness and its many physiological benefits.

“The mind is not the enemy. The mind is not the obstacle. The mind is actually your ally. The mind is noble.”

–Luke

TOPICS DISCUSSED ON THIS EPISODE:

Urban escape room & evasion course

How to succeed in meditation (without really trying)

Changing the conversation around meditation

Why Light’s book is accessible for the everyman & experienced practitioners

Reframing writing as a practice

Dealing with criticism (& laughing at negative reviews on Yelp)

How Light (a young man from Alabama) first got into meditation in the 90s

GOT QUESTIONS?

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